Pokémon Triumphs in Legal Battle Against Chinese Clone Game, Secures Significant Damages and Public Apology
“We have thoroughly contemplated it and gained valuable insights,” creators of the fraudulent bid commented.
The Pokémon Company has secured “considerable” damages after a prolonged confrontation with a Chinese mobile imitation, following years of savvy legal maneuvering.
While the final amount has not been disclosed, The Pokémon Company previously indicated it was owed $72 million (£57 million) by the developers of an unauthorized Pocket Monsters mobile application that blatantly utilized Pokémon characters and gameplay.
The Pokémon Company appeared to have initially won its case last September; however, two of the involved companies (Guangzhou Maichi Network Technology and Khorgos Fangchi Network Technology) appealed the verdict, resulting in an additional delay (thanks to Automaton).
Recently, a Chinese court has ruled on the matter definitively, compelling the companies to concede defeat and issue a public apology.
“We have thoroughly understood that our actions contravened pertinent laws during the second-instance trial and settlement process,” the companies stated in a joint public statement released on The Pokémon Company’s official website. “[Our] game has extensively borrowed design elements from the famous Pokémon video game series, infringing on the copyrights associated with the Pokémon video games, and has improperly capitalized on the fame and popularity of the Pokémon video games, thereby constituting acts of unfair competition.”
“Our copyright infringement and acts of unfair competition have resulted in substantial economic losses for the rights holders and severely harmed the reputation of the original Pokémon video games. We sincerely apologize to TPC and other rights holders, as well as to the multitude of players, consumers, and the general public.”
The game, variously known as Pocket Monster: Remake or Pocket Monster: Field/Reissue, has been completely removed from the market. The developers behind the game also claim they have faced “a significant economic penalty and considerable reputation damage.”
“We have thoroughly contemplated it and gained valuable insights.”
Earlier this week, Fortnite creator Epic Games